Were it not for the infamous news footage of R. Budd Dwyer's public suicide, this man would certainly never have crossed my radar. That footage is all over the internet, and its enduring popularity is due mostly to shock at what our media will dare to show (a man blowing his brains out was actually televised in 1987). But it gives no indication or insight into the man at the center of the controversy. So from that standpoint, "Honest Man" is a welcome examination of the man, himself.
And it is a surprisingly touching, discreet and (most importantly) informative documentary. To hear the interviewees tell it, Dwyer was a real man of the people, religiously devoted to his family and honest to a fault (perhaps naively). He really seems like a good guy, politician or not, and maintained his own brand of likability. I guess you could call this one-sided, or just a tribute ... but in the end, it's still far more than this country ever did know about him.
But discretion only lasts so long here, and I was pretty disappointed that the movie included the incident. They did such a good job of portending what was coming, that they could've cut as soon as he raised the gun. The implication was all that was needed. But they decided to let us see the gunshot, and linger on his slumped (and bloodied) corpse. It's not graphic footage, so much as surprising, but in this case it is gratuitous. I wish they didn't show it.
And hearing the TV producer's specious justification for airing the footage (equating it with our current sensationalist cable news) truly made me feel dirty for having sought out this footage on YouTube years ago, because there was a real human being who let the incident do the talking for his legacy. Dwyer mentions in the press conference that he hopes to be remembered for something else, other than the CTA scandal - and dark though this is, he got his wish.
But I do feel that I've gotten a clearer picture about who R. Budd Dwyer was, and for that this documentary is a winner.
7/10
And it is a surprisingly touching, discreet and (most importantly) informative documentary. To hear the interviewees tell it, Dwyer was a real man of the people, religiously devoted to his family and honest to a fault (perhaps naively). He really seems like a good guy, politician or not, and maintained his own brand of likability. I guess you could call this one-sided, or just a tribute ... but in the end, it's still far more than this country ever did know about him.
But discretion only lasts so long here, and I was pretty disappointed that the movie included the incident. They did such a good job of portending what was coming, that they could've cut as soon as he raised the gun. The implication was all that was needed. But they decided to let us see the gunshot, and linger on his slumped (and bloodied) corpse. It's not graphic footage, so much as surprising, but in this case it is gratuitous. I wish they didn't show it.
And hearing the TV producer's specious justification for airing the footage (equating it with our current sensationalist cable news) truly made me feel dirty for having sought out this footage on YouTube years ago, because there was a real human being who let the incident do the talking for his legacy. Dwyer mentions in the press conference that he hopes to be remembered for something else, other than the CTA scandal - and dark though this is, he got his wish.
But I do feel that I've gotten a clearer picture about who R. Budd Dwyer was, and for that this documentary is a winner.
7/10